Before leaving Skardu, we received news about the kidnapping of a Polish engineer by Taliban forces just outside the town of Peshawar. This did nothing for our confidence and we had second thoughts about continuing our journey through Pakistan overland. So far we have not seen any evidence of hostilities, but the constant bad press, bomb reports and general public opinion that the country is descending into chaos, has made us think twice about continuing on.

Originally our plan was to visit the north western areas of Pakistan where the famous Kalasha people live. However this area is in the heart of the lawless tribal region and very close to the Afghan border - a ‘no go’ zone these days. So from Skardu we decided to head back to the safety of the KKH, via the remote high altitude plateau of the Deosai Plains. The road (a 4wd track) is used only sporadically, as it’s impassable most of the year due to snow and flooding.

The Deosai Plains reminded us a bit of Mongolia, exhibiting that same remoteness and sense of space. A big difference is that these plains do not descend below 4,000m a.s.l!! The 100km+ section took us around 4 hours and included a couple of river crossings. Some were shallow enough to ride through…

… while others had rickety suspension bridges.

We overnighted in Tarashing, a popular starting point for mountaineers looking to conquer Nanga Parbat (8,125m a.s.l), also known as ‘killer mountain’. The weather wasn’t good, so we only got a glimpse of its lofty peaks. Upon arrival in Tarashing village we were instantly approached by the local police and asked to register.

We also found some really cheap accomodation with good food and nice views. The only problem was a rogue mouse which helped itself to our bread and Kamil’s t-shirt

The next morning we finally rejoined the KKH and turned south towards Chilas, again following the Indus river. The going was tough, having to negotiate never ending turns around cliff faces with a hundred or so meter drop-offs. In the ever increasing heat, it makes 200km seem like a long 500km day.

In Chilas we stayed in the only open hotel. It was the ‘Eid’ (last day of Ramadan) and everything else was closed. Even getting petrol was a problem, as all deliveries had ceased and would only resume in 3-4 days. We tried getting a few litres from passing drivers, but it was hopeless as almost all the cars on the road have been converted to diesel. Finally, after two hours of searching, we managed to find a gas station that had a few left over litres in a barrel. Of course we took as much as we could and continued on, hoping that it would last until the next large town…

The stretch of the KKH between Chilas and Besham, lies in the heart of the Indus Kochistan region. It is well known that its people don’t like foreigners! The towns seemed very somber, people didn’t smile or wave and kids regularly threw rocks at us.

In Besham, given the general unfriendly atmosphere, we decided to stay at a heavily guarded hotel. We went through three check posts just to get to the reception! We’re not sure whether the signs on the premises were meant to scare us of give us comfort…

In heat that’s unusual for October, we reached Islamabad. We were surprised to find that it’s a very clean and orderely city. Not the chaotic mix of cars and people that we were expecting. This is largely due to the fact that Islamabad is a relatively young town, designed specifically for the role of ‘capital city’.
We stayed with our friend Nauman and his family, who not only provided us accomodation and food, but were also great guides during our time in Islamabad. Guys, thank you for your fantastic hospitality!!

While in Islamabad we arranged for our visas to Dubai (U.A.E) and land transport for our motorcycle. We had planned to ride all the way to Iran and then catch a ferry across to Dubai, but that would have meant travelling through the region of Balochistan (a place renowed for drug smuggling and kidnapping) and the city of Quetta, the headquaters of Pakistan’s Taliban. With the security situation the way it is at the moment, we just didn’t think it was worth the risk…
Instead we’ll be shipping the bike and ourselves to Dubai from where we’ll continue our journey.

We have added some more photos in the gallery.